


New Year, New Beginnings

by Sodochlor



Category: Banjo-Kazooie Series, Conker's Bad Fur Day
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-02
Updated: 2020-01-02
Packaged: 2021-02-27 15:55:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,463
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22079572
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sodochlor/pseuds/Sodochlor
Summary: Banjo, Conker, and their friends have a New Years party celebration at the beach, filled with fun activities, live performances, and an all-you-can-eat buffet ton of food. Things get a little sidetracked when the two longtime friends are dragged from the main event. Conker finally discloses his emotions which have been disturbing him for the entire year, and Banjo surprisingly offers a wise insight to his problems. The two share their privacy together, but Kazooie calls them over just in time for the countdown. The bear and squirrel make it back as they all celebrate the arrival of a new year and the start of a new chapter in their lives.
Relationships: Banjo (Banjo-Kazooie Series) & Conker the Squirrel, Implied Kazooie (Banjo-Kazooie Series)/Berri (Conker's Bad Fur Day)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 5





	New Year, New Beginnings

It was a beautiful, dark evening. The stars shimmered in the night sky, the moon giving it a nice cool blue tint. Banjo, Conker, and the rest of their other pals had planned a nice, festive picnic over at a beach situated not too far away from their respective homelands. It called for a huge feast full of food (provided by Conker and his court), various activities for the occasion (Banjo and Kazooie’s idea), and a huge countdown when the time came around. They were going to make it the best New Year’s celebration they’ve ever had.

Banjo and his friends were the first to arrive, and were currently setting up their tents. Conker and his gang would arrive not too long after, with his subordinates packing a large supply of food enough for the whole party to last the night.

"Wow, that’s a huge ton of food! How were you able to gather all of this?" Banjo was awed by the amount of culinary treats that were brought.

"Well, perks of being a king, am I right?" The two chuckled at the small remark.

"Anyway, thanks for volunteering to bring the food," Banjo said, showing his gratitude.

"My pleasure. Anything for an old friend." Conker turned to his subjects as they began to set up the platter.

Banjo turned to look at all his friends. They were all doing their part to put the party all together; Kazooie was helping the others put the tents up, Bottles started the campfire, and Conker brought enough food and snacks for everyone. It made him want to shed a tear just from the sight of them helping each other and getting along.

After all the jobs were done, Banjo had everyone gather around the campfire. Chatter spread between members for a while before they were silenced by Banjo.

"Everyone," the bear started, "thank you all for coming to this wonderful year-end celebration. I first would like to thank Conker for the VERY huge amount of food that he and his friends prepared for us tonight!"

All of the members gave out a round of applause to Conker and his group at the table of food neatly arranged in a row.

"Next, I’d like to thank Mumbo Jumbo and Humba Wumba for offering to do a live performance showcasing their skills in magic! They’ve worked long and hard for this, so make sure you enjoy watching their performance later!"

Everyone applauded the two magicians who stood beside the sea, them giving out a little wave.

"And lastly, I’d like to thank the Jinjos to help with our fireworks display for the end of our New Year countdown!"

They all gave a final round of applause to the group of Jinjos among them, who bowed as a sign of gratitude.

"Now, I’d like to start off our celebration with a nice little feast before we begin our activities and performances! Everyone up, there’s plenty for all of us to have seconds, so eat as much you’d like! Burgers will be served later, though, so make sure to keep an eye on that, guys!"

Everyone stood up and filed near the food table. There was a wide brange of delicacies to eat, ranging from starters to dessert. All of them were excited to try out each and every one of them.

Conversations followed right after as they were all interacting with one another. Kazooie had started talking with Berri which made Conker uneasy. Ever since the two ended their relationship 2 months ago, he still couldn’t help but feel upset whenever he saw her, especially when it looked like she was having a better time than he was. _Just when did everything go wrong between the two of us?_ he’d often think.

Over at the side of the campfire, an aproned Banjo was busy flipping patties for the upcoming burgers. Just as he was finished with the last one, the bear decided it was time, immediately went to the campfire and announced:

"Okay, everyone! We’re about to begin our list of events leading to the countdown, starting with Mumbo and Humba’s water show!"

The crowd gathered in rows as they made their way to watch the performance. Some people were not finished with their food as they held it in their hands and sat. Everyone quickly shushed their mouths to make way for the start of the show.

"We thank you for taking time to watch special performance," Mumbo began off.

"We practice long and hard, we hope you enjoy," Humba added.

And with that, the water slowly rose and had formed a wall. A gap was made, eventually splitting the wall into two, and they gradually reformed into pillars. The pillars then started to curl and twist around one another, forming a double helix shape. Three balls of water rose from the ocean and levitated around the helix. They slowly rotated around it, picking up speed as they spun. Eventually, they collided with each other and had formed a large hoop, still encircling the helix structure.

The audience was awed at the elegant visuals, entranced by the swirls and the splashes and the smooth motion of the water as it flowed gracefully through the air. Banjo, too, to no surprise, found himself lost in the beauty of the display, until his feathered friend brought him back to reality to tell him something in private.

"Hey, uh, looks like your friend Tiny Nuthead over there’s up to something, maybe you should go check him out," Kazooie said, pointing at a figure out in the distance that sat on a log.

"Okay, I’ll be right back." Banjo stood up and carefully found his way through the small crowd, then started running away from the main stage towards the distant figure.

As the bear went nearer, though, he came to recognize that it was Conker sitting on the log, staring out into the ocean that glistened in the blue moonlight.

"Hey there, buddy," Banjo greeted his little friend.

"Go away, Banjo, I want to be left alone." Conker’s voice was quiet yet mellow enough to be shrouded by the cool breeze and the rushing waves.

Disregarding his request, Banjo walked over and sat beside him. "So, uh… what's on your mind? Why are you not back there at the show?"

Conker lifted his head and turned towards the bear, then put his head down to stare at the sand. He picked up a handful and fiddled with it for a moment, feeling and grasping the grainy, rough texture, then let it sift through his fingers as it blew away with the current.

"Come on, tell me what’s got you feeling down, bud. This’ll only be between the two of us, I promise."

Conker sighed. "I… I don’t know."

"What do you mean, you don’t know?" the bear asked.

"It’s just that, I’m glad you invited me to your party, but…"

"…But what?"

"I’m not sure if I deserve to be here. Everyone else looks like they’re having fun, everyone except me. I don’t wanna be the guy to bum you out, but despite the huge feast and all the fun activities you've planned for us tonight, I don't feel quite happy with how things are the way they are now. I don't deserve to enjoy myself, especially at a time like this. Not since Berri and I broke up."

"Aw, I’m sorry to hear about that." Banjo started to stroke the head fur of the squirrel right beside him. "Go on…"

Conker dragged the palm of his hand across his face and sighed once more. "Looking back, I've done things that I now regret doing, and look how it all turned out. I mean, look at her now, she's having the time of her life with your bird friend over there. And me? I'm just sitting here wondering about when it all went wrong. I just don't get why I suddenly have it better now than I did before. It's already the end of the year, and everything around me has changed so much… so why can't I?"

Banjo scooted closer to the squirrel. "If you're planning to change yourself for the better, then you're going to have to stop looking back. Just because so much has happened to you over the past few months doesn't mean you have to let them cloud your mind. You have to accept things as they are so that you can move on. It's all in the past and it's not happening now, so why keep yourself worried about it? The past doesn't have to affect how you feel about yourself unless you let it, so just try to live in the present and enjoy the moment. That's the reason why I brought you here in the first place; for you to have fun and enjoy yourself for a change."

Conker took a while to contemplate about Banjo's words. He never realized that the bear actually had many wise things to say. It was something he never expected to witness out of him, and the squirrel had known him for years. He never thought that someone like Banjo, while lazy and somewhat inattentive, could actually carry a sense of responsibility and maturity, and it was a quality of him that he secretly started to admire.

"I'll tell you what," the bear continued, "we'll go back to the party, and I'll stick with you for the rest of the night; that way, you won't have to feel alone. How's that sound?"

Conker thought for a moment, then gave out his answer. "Yeah, that sounds nice."

Just as Banjo was about to stand up from his seat, Conker stopped him and asked him for a favor.

"Wait, um, would you mind...staying here for a bit? I want us to spend some time together alone for a while, just the two of us."

The bear accepted his offer. "Sure, buddy, I'll stay with you."

The two sat together on the log as they stared out at the horizon, the water reflecting the stars in the sky. The waves washed tiny grains of sand ashore, tickling their feet as it receded. Little did they know that their bodies were in contact with each other, closing the space between them. Their arms now embraced the back of one another as Conker leaned his head on Banjo's shoulder, the bear in turn leaning his head on top of the shorter figure. Their combined heat circulated around their bodies, giving both a sense of warmth. The two closed their eyes and listened to the open sea, its waves crashing against the rocks as the cold breeze flowed smoothly against their fur, their expressions as blank as the horizon beyond them.

"Time sure flies by fast, doesn’t it?" said Conker, his nose now sniffling from the frigid air around them.

"It sure does, Conker, it sure does…" Banjo replied, "I wish it would all stay like this, forever…"

"Me too, big guy, me too." Conker ran his hand through Banjo’s back, soothing the big bear. "I wonder what the new year has in store for us…"

Their private little cuddle came to a halt as a distant voice was calling for them.

"Hey, lover boys! Only a minute left till countdown!" Kazooie's loud, yet harsh voice announced.

"Guess we’re about to find out soon enough," said Banjo, helping Conker up as the two were ready to return in time for the countdown.

"Wanna race?" challenged the squirrel as he prepared his running start.

"Aw, come on, Conker, you know I’m not good when it comes to running," whined the bear as he also got ready to run.

"Relax, dude, it’s just for fun." And soon after, the two started sprinting across the sand. As they dashed through the shoreline, they both kept at a similar rate of speed, first place fluctuating between the bear and the squirrel. Kazooie cheered them on as they hurried on back to the campfire.

"Aaaand, it looks like a tie! We’ve got your two winners right here, folks!" Kazooie announced as the two runners finally made it to the finish.

Conker panted heavily from the continuous effort of running. "Surprised…that you…could keep up…"

"Thanks…you were going…so fast, so…I tried to…oh, my gosh…"

"That seemed like quite the run, eh?" Kazooie patted the two boys on the back. "Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m gonna go hang out with hot stuff over there," she said before leaving them to go over to Berri, who patiently waited for her over at the fire.

Banjo and Conker joined along the crowd as everyone unanimously started to count down.

"10, 9, 8…" excitement filling up in their bodies as Banjo grabbed Conker and held onto him tightly.

"…5, 4, 3, 2, 1…" The moment the timer hit zero, Jinjos started to swarm the sky, and as they flew over, bursts of colour immediately sprouted in their place. Letter by letter, the fireworks spelled out the words, "HAPPY NEW YEAR". Everyone shouted in glee as they welcomed the new year with grand and open arms. At this time, drinks were being served, and everyone had taken a nice cold glass.

"Here’s to us all a great and joyous new year," Banjo raised his glass in the air, with the rest following suit.

"And here’s to us all great and joyous new beginnings!" Conker finished the sentence as the crowd clacked their drinks and cheered out loud in celebration.

Fun-filled festivities followed soon after. After a while, Banjo and Conker were taking a break from the excitement. They sat on one of the log benches, resting nicely near the campfire.

"I had a fun time tonight," Conker said, placing his arm around the bear’s shoulders. "Thanks for inviting me here. I really appreciate it."

"You’re more than welcome to hang out with us all you want. Just drop on by or give us a call." Banjo swung his arm around Conker’s shoulders and pulled him closer. "You have our phone number, right?"

"Yep, I’ve got it right in my head." Conker points to his head, letting him know he memorized his phone number.

"Happy New Year, Conker."

"Happy New Year, Banjo."

The bear and squirrel’s heads slowly leaned towards one another as they share another cuddle, looking off at the distant moon. They start to question what sorts of obstacles await them in their future as they learn to strive together in the following years to come.

**_“Sometimes, if you ever find yourself alone struggling in life, you just gotta get yourself a friend who'll struggle with you by your side no matter what.”_ **

**_— Sodochlor, 2020 ~~(even though someone might have already said this before)~~_**

**— END —**

**Author's Note:**

> HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYONE! ~~(Dude you're like 2 days late)~~
> 
> How's 2020 going for you all so far? How did the holidays treat you? Did you all get any presents this Christmas? Tell me ~~so I can come into your houses and steal- I mean borrow them~~
> 
> I intended to publish this at the end of 2019, but my lazy ass and the fact that it took two entire days to make this made that impossible. OH WELL ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯
> 
> Anyways, hope you enjoyed reading this just as much as I did writing it! ~~(probably not at all since I stressed myself out writing this in time for the new year)~~ Leave a kudos, or a comment, yada yada yada, stuff like that.
> 
> As the title says, here's to you all a great 2020, and here's to you all great new beginnings!


End file.
